1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an oil for dust adsorption that exhibits an allergen inactivation action. More specifically, the invention relates to an oil for dust adsorption with an allergen inactivation action that is used by adhesion to a cleaning implement such as a dust adsorption mop, mat, or wiper.
2. Description of the Related Art
The causes of allergic diseases can include pollen, mites and their remains or excrement, pet hair from cats or dogs or the like, household dust, and certain foods. These substances that cause allergic diseases are known as allergens.
Allergens that afflict a large number of people indoors include mites, household dust, and pet hair. Conventionally, the use of cleaning appliances such as vacuum cleaners has been considered a good method of removing these allergens. However, in order to ensure satisfactory removal of these allergens to prevent the onset of allergic disease, vacuum cleaning must be repeated several times, which is very laborious.
As a result, in recent years, methods of inactivating and removing allergens have been proposed. However, because these methods require the dispersion or application of an allergen-inactivating reagent using a sprayer or the like, followed by subsequent removal of the reagent by either wiping or use of a vacuum cleaner, they still involve considerable labor (see Japanese Laid-Open Publication No. 2003-334504).
Furthermore, even if a dust cloth, a mop, or a wiper or the like is used to wipe away mites and the house dust that they inhabit, which represent the most common allergens responsible for allergic disease, because any allergens that fall from the cleaning implement have not been inactivated, they can cause further outbreaks of the allergic disease. Accordingly, these allergens need to be retained permanently on the cleaning implement, as well as being inactivated.
An oil for dust adsorption can be applied to a cleaning implement such as a mop or a wiper to remove household dust. However, most reagents used for inactivating allergens are water-soluble materials, meaning dissolving or dispersing these reagents within a dust adsorption oil has proved difficult.